Honey Garlic Shrimp

I spend an extraordinary amount of time on Pinterest — organizing boards, dreaming in themes of color (what, you don’t have a board explicitly dedicated to the color pink?), and marveling at how many people shared recipes for honey garlic shrimp. So I tried one, and it was pretty icky. I’m pretty sure the shrimp were in a diabetic coma before they even made it onto the plate. But the appeal of those flavors never left me, so I set out to make a version more akin to my initial expectations.

In this recipe for two, the shrimp are bathed in butter and garlic, tossed with a half-pound of snipped snow peas and honey, and finished with a big hit of acid in the form of lemon juice or rice vinegar — dealer’s choice. One tablespoon of honey might not seem like a lot, but in contrast to the bite of the acid, and heat of the red pepper flakes, it rears its head in all the right ways.

This generously serves two as a main, with no plan for leftovers, as I’m of the opinion shrimp are best just after they are cooked. To keep this dish feeling verdant and fresh, serve it with fresh scallions and cilantro over steamed rice or quinoa.

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp in an even layer and cook undisturbed until pink on the bottom, about 1 minute. Flip the shrimp and add remaining the butter, garlic, and salt. Cook, stir occasionally, until the shrimp are opaque, 1 to 2 minutes more.

Add the snow peas and honey. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the snow peas have softened and the shrimp just begins to lightly brown. Add the lemon juice or vinegar and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds more. Remove from the heat and stir in the pepper flakes. Serve immediately over rice or quinoa.

Recipe Notes

Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.